Tom’s unique design made me think, “hmm, what about doing something similarly unique in recognition of my favorite baseball team, the New York Yankees?” History; my parents were Dodgers fans being native to Brooklyn. I was born there too but we moved to Queens when I was three. So as a Queens kid I of course celebrated the Mets’ Amazin’ ‘69 season as did most of the kids in the neighborhood, but I was really a closet Yankees fan. My best friend on the block was a Yankees fan, and they never missed a game on Channel 11. So of course being there more than my house, I developed an appreciation for Yanks’ rich history even though they were just so-so at that time. My family wouldn’t go to the Bronx to see the Yanks, but we saw tons of games at Shea. Finally during the summer of ‘68 with a camp group I finally went to my first Yankees game. It was a monumental day - I saw Mantle belt a homer in his final season! I came out of the baseball closet at that point. Ok, the Mets were fun, but the Yankees! The Yankees were IT!

Fast forward to last year. On a whim I PM’d Tom with my inspired of idea of a Yankees brush based on his Naval Reserve 20 years brushes. Originally I thought how cool would it be to have pinstripes as the primary motif, but Tom correctly pointed out it would be too busy and would detract from the brush’s gestalt. As a Yankees fan, I‘d love to see them win their 28th World Series this season. Tom and I swapped ideas back and forth, finally settling on a brush that symbolizes the Yanks’ upcoming season. The white section for being home at The Stadium, the grey section at top is for their hopeful success on the road. There’s a single pinstripe between the sections. The team’s NY logo was embossed into the body of the brush. Tom found the “28” pinstripe pin on eBay. With some slight modification to the base, it fit perfectly. The number is significant to me on another level - I’ve played the same Martin D-28 since the early 70s. Playing it feels like home.

Tom was great to work with. He took my seed of an idea and turned it into a real tangible brush! His artisanship is a welcome addition to my den. Tom started the project, making two handles. He can explain the thought process better than I. At this time I opted to knot only the white handle. The second handle, finished in all road grey, makes a sweet matched pair. I may send it back to him at some point and ask him to install a black and white synth knot (get it? “road” brush?). Speaking of knots, we used an Elite Razor 26mm High Mountain White bulb. I’ll post bloom shots after I break in this custom beauty. The brush arrived in a groovy Endeavor Brush Works travel tube. I took a few pics yesterday. Btw, there’s plenty of pics Tom sent me during the process. I’ll post them with his permission.

What a great story and great idea. I really enjoyed working on these handles and it really helped push the limits of my skills. The backstory on your history with the team really brings the whole project home...

For those that are interested, here are a few photos of the handles in progress. I started out with two 3D printed resin handles -- one for the final brush and the second as a backup in case I screwed the first up. We got to the end of the project with both intact, so it seemed fitting and logical to make a matched set.

Here are the handles straight from the printer, lightly sanded. The "28" pin is set to test hole size.

After applying automotive primer, I filled in some gaps and voids with bondo...

Here are the brushes after the initial coats of paint...the grey in this shot turned out to be too dark, so I reworked that after talking with Charlie...

Testing the navy blue silicone caulk...who'd've thought you could get navy blue caulk???

Grey added to the top ring...

Handle complete, with shims and knot...

Brush complete with second handle in the back...

Travel tubes with Yankee logo...you can take the logo card out of the tube so the top cap "vents" for travel...

Thanks Charlie for letting me be a part of your story. I enjoyed the project, but more importantly enjoyed our regular communication along the way!

(02-06-2018, 06:27 PM)TheLegalRazor Wrote: Charlie, what a great, unique and highly personalized brush and extra handle combination! Even the storage tubes are customized. Well done by both you and Tom. We'll look forward to more pictures.

It was a lot of fun, Ricardo. Tom jumped on my idea and ran with it. I’m so pleased with the outcome! The customized tubes were a pleasant surprise when I opened the box.

What a great story and great idea. I really enjoyed working on these handles and it really helped push the limits of my skills. The backstory on your history with the team really brings the whole project home...

Thanks Charlie for letting me be a part of your story. I enjoyed the project, but more importantly enjoyed our regular communication along the way!

Tom, this was a ton of fun for me. You fashioned my vague idea into reality. That’s very cool. It was a real thrill seeing your update photos as the project developed. You did a wonderful thing here. Thank you.

(02-06-2018, 09:03 PM)SCOV Wrote: While the local Minnesota Twins were 3 & 11 vs the Yankees in 2017 (and that was better than some years), really nice brushes !
Enjoyed seeing the process and finished result.

Here are some drawings from the design process. The first a sketch, trying to get our arms around how to fit the #28 and pinstripes in the design. The second a 3D model with the Yankees logo embossed in the side...